Bush Stole My Civil Liberties, F. Jim Drove the Getaway Car

When we were talking about oral sex, stained dresses, and Bill Clinton, F. Jim Sensenbrenner

was more than happy to accommodate those that were hunting the President. Actually, he was one of the hunters (for some reason that mental picture always reminds me of Elmer Fudd).

With Bush we are talking about lying to take us into a war, illegally eavesdropping on American citizens without a warrant, and a “unitary executive.” Call me crazy but I think that these topics are much more serious than the old BJ. Where oh where is F. Jim, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee while so many important issues are upon us? Who knows, but we do know that one thing he is not doing is exercising any oversight or accountability. Remember the days of “rule of law” and the president “is not above the law”? Well, I guess those ideas only pertained to Presidents that are Democrats.

F. Jim has been abusing his position as chairman to protect Bush rather than exercise oversight or accountability. Since Bush has clearly broken the law with his warrentless spying (take a look at this homework assignment for proof) F. Jim should now be charged with obstruction/party to a crime. Don’t believe me about his record? Take a look at a few things on his wrap sheet:

Last year when the Democrats on his committee were hearing witnesses that were critical of the Patriot Act, F. Jim stormed into the room and single-handedly cut off the witnesses and shut down the hearing. The rule breaker broke just about ever rule in Robert’s Rules of Order on that occasion.

Democrats could never get F. Jim to take up a topic in the committee, so they were forced to take the issues up themselves. F. Jim refused to give their forums any recognition so that they would not be official hearings. In case you did not know, the Republicans control everything in Congress and Dems need permission from them to even get a room in which to hold said forums. After F. Jim and one of his aides heard some of the things being said in the Dems forums they reportedly told the Dems not to bother asking for another room ever again. Gee, and I thought that this was the “People’s House”. Apparently the people that have Democratic representatives don’t matter to F. Jim.


Democrats offered a resolution demanding that the White House turn over critical documents regarding the treasonous outing of CIA operative Valerie Plame. NO! Said F. Jim Sensenbrenner.

Rep. John Conyers (D-Michigan) the ranking member of the House Judiciary committee and others demanded that they conduct an inquiry regarding Bush’s illegal spying on American citizens. F. Jim once again refuses to conduct any oversight. Conyers then was forced to have another “forum” that lacked official sanction because of the obstructionist F. Then F. once again would not allow them to have a room, so the people’s representatives were forced to meet in the basement of a House office building. Sounds like rules on a plantation to me.


John Nichols wrote the following on this topic in the Capital Times this week:

As the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Sensenbrenner has a constitutionally mandated responsibility to take seriously the charges of executive lawbreaking and impropriety that are currently in play. If he cannot execute this responsibility in a reasoned and bipartisan manner, then he has a duty to step aside.

That is a serious choice. But, surely, the issues that are at stake demand such seriousness as the American people have clearly indicated. A new Zogby Poll shows that 52 percent of Americas believe that if George Bush violated the law when he ordered security agencies to engage in warrantless wiretaps on the communications of U.S. citizens who were accused of no crimes, the president should be impeached. So widespread is this faith that almost one quarter of those who identified themselves as "very conservative" expressed support for impeachment as a response to the spying scandal.

So far, however, Sensenbrenner has allowed his partisanship to prevent him from even beginning to execute his constitutional duties.

I agree with Nichols but I’m sick of F. Jim’s continual "party before principle" values. I say arrest Bush and while you are at it, arrest F. Jim Sensenbrenner too! For me there is no difference between the guy that robbed me and the one driving the getaway car.